Bugged Out
by katsuyo
Summary: Grissom has a deceased Drag Queen, two strange beetles and a blood stained book on Asian beetles at his latest crime scene. Discovering the author of the book is in Las Vegas for an Insect Symposium, Gil requests the services of Doctor Shino Aburame, an expert in Entomology from Konoha to help him with his case.


**Author's Note:** This is for the crossover challenge on the reader's appreciation club over on Y! Gallery.

My crossover choice is Naruto to CSI.

Yeah, this is going to be interesting.

Special dedication to my late husband, Doug, who actually worked on the database for IAFIS, the FBI fingerprint System and helped make it a reality.

All those chats about your database work paid off. Thanks, honey.

Beetle names from the website: african beetles . com

I used this website of CSI quotes to get a better feel of the CSI characters:

wiki/CSI:_Crime_Scene_Investigation

Gil Grissom wanting to keep the beetle is in reference to a quote from Season 1, ep. 18 - $35 K O.B.O

Cockroach racing mentioned in the story was in Season 2, ep. 10 - Ellie

Friendship quote is by Marie de Rabutin-Chantal, Marquise de Sevigne.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto or CSI. I do not make a red cent out of this.

**Bugged Out**

Gil Grissom glanced up at the marquee and read the sign.

"Oldest Running Gay Burlesque in Las Vegas – Chan-telle and her lady-boys!"

"People will find anything entertaining." quipped Grissom with a slow rolling shake of his head.

Jim Brass gave Gil a smile and replied, "Las Vegas attracts all types and this show is an institution in this town."

"Oh? Which one? A boys school or a prison?" countered Grissom with a raised eyebrow, following Jim Brass under the police tape and into the theater.

"It depends on which night you come...tonight was clergy night." drawled Jim, carefully walking down one side of the hallway.

"What are we dealing with? Did they see anything?" asked Grissom, his eyes scanning the hallway and the main bar area, noting the group of scantily men huddled together at one end of the bar.

"The head-liner bought it. It looks like blunt force trauma but that's your department. In the meantime, I will start getting statements from the lady-boys. One of them may have some information but they claim Chan-telle was alone all night." replied Jim, looking doubtful.

Gil Grissom nodded.

He didn't expect anything less.

"Get Greg to start taking fingerprints of the 'boys' when he arrives and let Catherine know that I am in the star's dressing room." stated Grissom, walking past the uniforms posted on either side of the entrance to the back stage area.

He pushed through the door and tilted his head, his keen eyes picking up something shiny.

Grissom pulled out his flashlight and crouched down, peering at the object.

"What did you find? A contact lens?" asked a voice.

Gil turned, finding Catherine standing there with her case in hand and her camera around her neck.

"I found a beetle. Can you take a photo of its location?" returned Grissom, opening up his case and extracting a pair of long handled tweezers and a specimen jar while Catherine carefully put her case down before she leaned over, dropped the cardboard ruler marker next to the beetle and took a photo.

"Gil, what is it with you and bugs? What happened to you taking the night off? I thought you have a bug convention to attend?" countered Catherine, taking another photo.

"All in good time. I don't have to present my paper on Insect Forensics until 11 tomorrow morning and then I was planning to enter the cockroach races." returned Grissom with a smile, carefully picking up the beetle and placing it in the jar.

"Wow...cockroach racing. Yeah, that sounds like my idea of a good time right there." replied Catherine, not bothering to hide her distaste.

"Bag it but carefully. It will make it hard to identify it if it's crushed. I also want to keep him." cautioned Gil handing the jar off to Catherine as Jim entered through the doorway.

"Anything yet?" asked Brass, staying close to the wall.

"So far, we have a beetle." stated Grissom with satisfaction.

"Is it Paul, John, George or Ringo?" asked Brass as he waited for Grissom to get up and lead the way to the dressing room.

"Right now, it's evidence and the best lead we have." countered Grissom, picking up his case and following Brass.

"Catherine, continue processing this hallway. I am going to introduce myself to Miss Chan-telle."

Jim Brass nodded to the officer standing next to the door and pushed it open using a pair of latex gloves.

"Meet our victim, Miss Chan-telle Jones, head-liner and star of the show. Real name is Duane Morris, 36 years old, single and resident of Henderson." murmured Jim stepping to one side as Gil leaned in and examined the drag queen.

Gil Grissom noted the broken glass, white lilies strewn about the body and on the floor as well as the wet condition of the victim.

"For women are as roses, whose fair flower, being once display'd, doth fall that very hour...William Shakespeare." quoted Grissom, plucking a strand of hair away to reveal a dark red gash.

"Nice...looks like Miss Chan-telle had someone out there who didn't like her act. I will go and talk to the manager. See if he knows who delivered the flowers." replied Jim, turning to walk out the room.

Gil glanced up at the wall, noting three shadows.

"Jim, when you find that manager...ask them what was on that wall. They might be the reason Miss Chan-telle is pushing up lilies." returned Gil with a half smile.

"Cute, I'm on it. Anything else you want?" asked Jim, returning Grissom's smile.

"Tell Greg to come in after he's finished processing the boys. I need him to start processing this scene with Nick once he arrives."

"Got it. I will leave you two alone then." countered Jim with a grin, pushing open the door with the rubber gloves and leaving Grissom alone to his thoughts.

Gil Grissom carefully walked around the glass debris and looked over the top of the dressing room table.

"It looks like she put up a fight."

Grissom turned to find Nick enter the room and nodded.

"There are signs of a struggle, blood and broken glass from the bottle and the wine glass. I need photos taken before the table and mirror are dusted for prints. That...looks like blood. Swab it for processing." returned Grissom, pulling out his flashlight and turning it on.

"On it. What's that?" asked Nick craning his neck to follow the direction of the beam of light.

"My lucky night. Get me a collection jar. My evidence is running away." countered Grissom with a smile, raising a hand as he followed the beetle with his flashlight beam.

"What is it about you and the bugs? Here you go." asked Nick, quickly taking a photo of the beetle before handing over to Grissom.

"Have you and Catherine been comparing notes again?" returned Gil, carefully coaxing the beetle into the container as Nick started to take photos.

"Uh, Griss...I think your night is going to get a lot better. There's a book here in the corner with a letter hanging out of it that has you all over it." murmured Nick behind him.

Grissom carefully got to his feet and pocketed his flashlight, walking over to where Nick stood taking photographs of a bloodstained book lying on the floor.

"Beetles of Asia and The Asiatic Regions by Doctor Shino Aburame...you're right, my night has gotten a lot better." replied Gil with a smile.

_**-8-8-8-**_

"Hey Gil, I heard you hit the jackpot last night."

Gil Grissom looked up to find Catherine standing at the entrance of his office before he returned his gaze back to the two beetles in terrarium.

"Yes, in more ways than one. The author of that book we found at the crime scene is in town attending the Las Vegas Entomology Symposium. I've arranged to talk to him after the cockroach racing." replied Gil, his eyes on the two beetles crawling in the tank.

"You know, you're not supposed to be playing with the evidence." chided Catherine, watching Grissom place food into the tank with a pair of tweezers.

Grissom gave her a look before returning his gaze back to the beetles.

"These beetles are witnesses. I need to make sure they are taken care of." murmured Gil, his eyes glued on the beetles, fascinated.

"Whatever, Gil. I've processed the hallway evidence. In addition to George there, we found dirt and a white powder as well as a shoe print. I'm waiting on the lab to analyze the dirt and powder. I'm heading back to the lab to run the shoe print through the database." reported Catherine.

"Nick is working on the glass fragments found in the victim's dressing room from the wine bottle, wine glass and vase. Greg is processing the blood found on the table as well as running prints through IAFIS. I'm heading over to the Entomology Symposium to present my paper and talk to Dr. Shino Aburame." replied Grissom with a nod to the two beetles.

"Fun. I will check in on Nick and Greg later."

Grissom nodded and reached down, opening the bottom drawer to his desk.

Catherine started as she heard the hissing before the container was placed on the table.

"Do I want to know what they are?" asked Catherine with a grimace.

"Madagascar Hissing cockroaches...what? You didn't think I was going to attend and not race? I've been looking forward to this all week." countered Grissom with a smile.

"Yeah, I can tell. Sarah is working on the letter and Warrick is processing that book. I will keep you posted with the developments. Have fun at your bug convention." replied Catherine with a shudder and backed out of the room.

_**-8-8-8-**_

"Congratulations on your win, Dr. Grissom."

Gil looked over his shoulder to see a tall man with black hair in glasses and a trench coat walk up to the table.

Grissom glanced down at the man's symposium badge before reaching out a hand.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Dr. Aburame. Do you race?" asked Grissom with a boyish grin, as the other man shook his hand.

The man nodded and replied with a tiny lift of his lips, "Yes but not cockroaches...even with the dog food, they can be unpredictable. I prefer to race beetles."

"It makes sense...you being an expert in beetles after all." concurred Grissom, dropping his hand and returned his attention to the cock roaches hissing in the box.

Gil carefully scooped out his cockroaches, placing them back into their container while the man waited patiently.

"You said you needed to discuss a matter with me on the phone?" prompted Dr. Aburame with a tilt of his head.

Grissom nodded, his features somber.

"Is there a place we can go to discuss the matter in private?" asked Gil, sliding the container into the box and picking it up.

"I have a suite here at the hotel. We can talk there in privacy if that will work for you." replied the other man, turning on his heel and moving through the crowd.

Grissom recognized another man married to his job when he saw it and Dr. Shino Aburame had the signs of a man whose life was his work.

Gil followed the man through the crowd of bug nerds, hopeful that this man could shed some light on his case.

_**-8-8-8-**_

Shino Aburame swiped his key card through the lock and open the door to his suite with a sweep of his hand.

He had heard of Dr. Gilbert Grissom.

His papers on insects and crime scenes were renowned but it was his first time meeting the man in the flesh.

Shino walked over to the counter where fresh tea and refreshments had been set up and poured himself a cup of tea.

"Would you like some tea, Dr. Grissom? I have green tea or I can get you some herbal tea if you prefer?" asked Shino as he heard the man enter the suite and carefully close the door with an audible click.

"Thank you. Green tea would be good."

Shino quickly got the man a cup of tea and turned, to find Dr. Grissom sitting down in one of the chairs in the sitting area.

Shino put the tea in front of the man and sat down on the other side of the coffee table.

"You're not what I was expecting, Dr. Aburame." said Grissom, picking up his tea, adding a little sugar and taking a sip.

Shino hand stilled, mid-stir at Dr. Grissom's pronouncement before continuing in his task.

"Oh? How so, Dr. Grissom?" countered Shino smoothly, bringing the cup to his lips.

"You're a lot younger than I was expecting." returned Grissom with a smile.

Shino shrugged non-committedly.

It wasn't something that he had not heard before.

"My father was a professor in Entomology at Konoha University. I merely followed in the family business at a much younger age." murmured Shino with a fleeting smile.

"What made you decide to be an expert in beetles? I have always found cockroaches and ants more fascinating." drawled Grissom, smiling.

Shino chuckled, genuinely amused by the man's question.

"I've always thought that beetles are a lot like humans. They need a tough shell to protect their soft insides in order to survive." replied Shino with a smile.

"I can see that." agreed Gil with a nod.

"I also find that insects don't disappoint you like humans do. They are more predictable in that sense." continued Shino with a sage nod, taking another sip of his tea.

Grissom nodded, not knowing what to say in response to that statement.

He understood what the man meant.

Insects took a lot less work to figure out than what went on in someone's head.

"I know you have a busy lecture schedule but I was wondering if you could assist me in a case I'm currently working on?" asked Grissom, neatly changing the topic of conversation to his reason for requesting this meeting.

Shino stared at the man in surprise before giving Grissom a brief nod in the affirmative.

"I am happy to give you my expertise but I'm not sure how I can provide assistance." replied Shino, taking a sip of his tea.

Gil smiled, setting down his cup on the table and then reaching down into his box, pulling out a small terrarium.

"I found George and Ringo here at a crime scene. I was hoping you could identify them for me." countered Grissom with a smile.

Shino set down the tea cup when he saw the two beetles and reached out, moving the glass box closer for him to examine.

"Cute names. George is a Eudicella hereroensis from the Eudicella Family of beetles and prefers to eat fruit." murmured Shino, carefully pulling off the screen and handling the first beetle before putting it back and picking up the second beetle.

"And Ringo is...a Trichostetha calciventris from the Pachnoda Family of beetles. These are both rare beetles. Dead specimens fetch big money and are highly sought after by collectors but live specimens...they're worth a small fortune." stated Shino, carefully putting the beetle back into the tank and sliding the screen back in place.

Grissom nodded thoughtfully.

It did go a long way explaining why a copy of this man's book was found at the crime scene.

The sound of a ringing phone cut in and both men looked down at their cell phones.

"It's mine...excuse me for one moment. Grissom here."

Nick's voice sounded in his ear.

"Griss, we got three hits on the book. One set of prints belonged to your bug expert and the other two belongs to the victim and another man...Nicholas Mason. He came up in IAFIS for two counts of theft."

"Okay...got it." replied Gil, about to hang up.

"Hey Griss...one last thing. We analyzed the letter. It was written by a Dr. Shino Aburame offering to meet up to classify some rare beetles to a man by the name of Frank Nelson. I'm trying to figure out the connection between this Frank Nelson and our victim. As soon as I have, I will call you back."

Grissom hung up and slid the phone back in his pocket.

"Do you know a Frank Nelson?" asked Gil, picking up his cup and taking a sip.

"Yes...as a matter of fact, I do. He had written to me three weeks ago regarding his recent acquisition of rare beetles and wanted to know if I could verify them. I had sent him a letter in return stating that I can't do a proper classification if I didn't at least have a photo of the beetle. I had offered to meet him while I was in town for the Symposium but I never received a response." replied Shino, his gaze on the beetles in the tank.

Gil nodded.

The man confirmed what Nick had just told him on the phone.

"They're remarkable, aren't they? I'm planning to keep them in my office once the case is solved." remarked Grissom with a smile, his eyes drifting to the tank on the table.

"Yes, they are. I had photographs of these two species in my last book but rather than collect them and put them on a pin, I returned them back to their environment. It was cruel to kill them just to brag that I had something rare." murmured Shino in admiration, stroking a finger down the surface of the glass.

Gil looked up and suddenly put down his tea cup.

"Your last book...do you mean 'Beetles of Asia and The Asiatic Region'? We found a copy of it at the crime scene." stated Grissom, his eyes on the beetles crawling sedately on the branch.

Gil frowned when he saw the man shake his head in the negative before the man replied, "That's not possible. It's not due to be released for another couple of months. The only way anyone can get a copy of that book was to be at the charity dinner the Las Vegas Entomology Society hosted two nights ago."

Gil sat up fully and smiled.

"Would the Entomology Society have a list of who attended?" asked Grissom trying not to get too hopeful.

"They would but I can supply you with a list of those who purchased the book for the signing if that would assist you. My publishers were insistent that I keep record whom I sold the advanced copies to." replied Shino with a derisive twist of his lips before rising to his feet and walking over to the desk against the wall and opening up his brief case.

Gil stood up and watched the man return with a list of names.

"Will this help?" asked Shino, handing over the papers.

"Yes,yes...that will help...thank you, Doctor Aburame." returned Grissom, bending down to pull out a bag and sliding the list inside.

"I am curious about one thing, Dr. Grissom...these beetles. The last time I saw specimens like these, they were in the wild. How did they get to Las Vegas?" asked Shino, turning his head to give the tank a look.

"I just follow the evidence and what it tells me, Doctor Aburame. If it leads me to the answers to your question, you will be the first to know." replied Gil, picking up his box and walking over to the door.

"Doctor Grissom...aren't you forgetting something?" countered Shino with a tilt of his head to the tank on the table.

"Oh yeah. Take care of my evidence for me, Doctor Aburame. I will be back later to collect them." returned Gil with a smile, turning the handle of the door and letting himself out.

_**-8-8-8-**_

"Hey, Doc...what do we have so far?"

Doctor Robbins looked up as Catherine walked in and reached over to a nearby tray.

"We have glass and some foreign debris that was imbedded in the victim's skull. The poodle he was wearing on his head is bagged and ready to be taken up to trace."

Catherine gave Doctor Robbins a look.

"Poodle? Doc, living in the land of the Show Girl, I thought you would be used to big hair by now." replied Catherine with a laugh.

"Yes, but as far as wigs go...this one is ruff!" returned Dr. Robbins with a smirk, maneuvering his crutch so he could move around the table.

"Doc...that was terrible. So, apart from the bad jokes, what else do you have for me?" groaned Catherine, picking up the bag containing the wig with a grimace.

"You're right though. We can put a collar on it and sell it for a fortune as a designer pet." murmured Catherine with a chuckle.

"Gil was right. Victim died as a result of blunt force trauma to the head. See the lacerations in the skull from the glass? A lot of force was used to crack Miss Thang's head open like a coconut." murmured Doctor Robbins with a shake of his head.

"So, you think the assailant was male?" asked Catherine, collecting the container with the glass shards in it.

"Yes, that would be my guess. I also moved trace from her fingernails. She didn't go down without a fight. I found defensive wounds on the hands and see this bruise...here in the apex of the chest? Victim was shoved back into the chair with enough force to momentarily incapacitate them." informed Doctor Robbins, pointing to a dark purple spot on the victim's chest.

"Okay, I will take this to the lab and let Grissom know that our perp is freakishly strong with an obsession with drag queens and bugs. He's going to be thrilled." murmured Catherine, collecting the bags and walking out of the room.

"Thanks, Doc. If you find anything else, give me a call."

"Will do, Catherine. So...do you like show tunes? You strike me as a Streisand fan." returned Doctor Robbins, dismissing Catherine's presence and returning back to the body on the table.

_**-8-8-8-**_

Grissom popped his head into the lab, wincing at the loud Mexican death metal filling the room.

"Greg...what did you find out?" shouted Gil with a shudder.

Greg quickly reached over and switched off the CD Player with a sheepish look.

"Your bug expert...pretty thorough. All the books sold were numbered, so it was easy to track down the buyer. It turns out that the owner of this one is our victim, Duane Morris. Duane Morris it turned out has a Masters in Entomology. Want to hazard a guess what he did his Master's Thesis on?" asked Greg with a grin, holding up the book in question inside its evidence bag.

"Good job. Any news on the prints?" countered Grissom with a smile.

"The lady-boys come back clean but the manager...that's a different story. Sarah pulled prints off the letter and ran them through IAFIS. Three sets came back. Our victim, the bug expert and a third belonging to Nicholas Mason. The real Frank Nelson died when he was 5 days old."

"Okay...where are we with the rest of the evidence?" asked Grissom with a nod, smiling.

"The strange powder found at the scene and in the shoe print...is insect food. Organic and just come out on the market. Very high end. There's a vendor at the Symposium who has exclusive rights to the product." replied Greg, reaching over to pull a print out off the tray.

Grissom's eyes widened slightly before he pulled out his phone and a business card from his pocket.

"What's wrong, Griss?" asked Greg, getting to his feet as Gil called the number and waited.

"Hello...You have reached Dr. Shino Aburame. I can not answer your call at present..."

"I need to get back to the Symposium...Tell Nick and Warrick to meet me over there. I will call Jim." replied Gil, snatching the print out of Greg's hand and rushing out of the room.

"Thank you, Greg...good job." muttered Greg with a sigh as he picked up his phone and called Nick.

_**-8-8-8-**_

Shino frowned when he heard the knock on his suite door.

He wasn't expecting anyone. He had made sure of that.

"Who is it?" asked Shino cautiously.

"Room Service." drifted out the voice.

Shino frowned, quickly walking over to the table and picked up the terrarium.

"There's been a mistake. I did not request room service." replied Shino calmly, grabbing a towel from the bathroom and wrapped the glass tank before walking briskly over to the bed and stashing it underneath near the headboard.

"The Symposium organizers put in the request." countered the voice.

Shino frowned, his gut feeling telling him that something wasn't right with this situation.

"Okay, I will be there in a minute." called out Shino, getting to his feet and pulling out his cell phone, quickly pushing a button on his cell phone and waited for the call to go through.

"Rachel...This is Dr. Shino Aburame. Did you send up room service?" asked Shino, his eyes on the door.

"What? No, we didn't. The Awards Dinner is this evening...you told us you would be attending...is everything okay, Doctor Aburame?" asked the woman suddenly concerned.

Shino looked up in alarm when he heard the click of a gun being cocked.

"Open up the door, Dr. Aburame." drifted out the voice.

"Call the police, Rachel...now." replied Shino, quickly hanging up and tossing his phone onto the floor.

"Dr. Aburame...you have three seconds." warned the voice.

Shino cursed under his breath as he weighed up his options.

He had no choice and he knew it.

_**-8-8-8-**_

Shino woke up to the sound of his phone ringing nearby and his head hurting.

"Dr. Aburame. I was worried that I may have hit you too hard. That would be a pity since I need you to verify and classify these beetles for me."

Shino squinted as he tried to focus on the man pacing in front of him and ignore the fact that his skull felt like it has been cleaved in two.

Mercifully the phone took that opportunity to stop.

"Why am I tied up?" asked Shino, glancing down to find the phone cord and lap top cable wrapped securely around his wrists and ankles.

"You don't need to move to look at insects." replied the man with a smile.

"Do I know you? You don't look like any collector I've ever seen." countered Shino sarcastically, as the man carefully place the gun on the coffee table, opened up a bag and began to pull out cases.

"No, not formally but I know of your work and your expertise. I would like you to turn your attention to the cases." replied the man, picking up his gun and giving it a wave.

Shino swallowed his protest, wanting to refuse and thought better of it, finally nodding his compliance.

"You will need to put them in my lap. I can see better if they are closer." returned Shino cautiously.

Shino watched the man put the gun down and pick up a case, putting it in his lap.

"Going from left to right across first row: Bolbaffer princeps from the Scarabaeinae family, Click Beetle from the Elateridae family, Colophon kawaii from the Lucanidae Colophon family. Second row: Goliathus Albosignatus from the Goliathus family, Heliocopris Colossus. Bates from the family Heliocopris, Psammodes gravidus from the Tenebrionidae Psammodes family." rattled off Shino with practiced ease and years of knowledge.

"There. That wasn't so difficult. How much is the case worth, Dr. Aburame?" asked the man with a knowing smile.

"All the beetles are very rare. To the right collector, it's worth around $25, 000." replied Shino dispassionately.

The man whistled in appreciation.

"So much for a bunch of dirty bugs...amazing." returned the man with a laugh.

"Well, to an uneducated asshole like you, they would be just a bunch of dirty bugs." retorted Shino with a curl of his upper lip.

The sound of the gun cocking and the feel of the barrel pressing firmly into his temple informed Shino that his comment had hit a sore spot.

"Shut your damn mouth! Just because you have a degree doesn't make you better than me. Duane made that mistake...always showing off." growled the man, pushing the barrel against Shino's temple once more in warning before pulling away.

"No, it's just one of the many things that sets us apart." countered Shino calmly, glaring at the man through his glasses.

"Guys like you have it so damn easy. You just ask and you get it...everything falls in your lap." yelled the man, pushing his nose against Shino's own.

"Is that what you think? Man, you're delusional. I got bullied all my life by assholes like you because I was different. How does that construe as having it 'easy'?" countered Shino with a shake of his head, disgusted with the man's logic.

The phone began to ring once more.

"Look, if you're going to kill me...then do it. You will be doing me a favor." continued Shino, suddenly fed up.

"Make the phone stop!" yelled the man, pulling away and waving at the phone vibrating on the table with his free hand.

"What with, dumbass? My amazing powers of telekinesis? I'm tied up...remember." snapped Shino sarcastically, pissed off with this idiot.

Both men looked up as someone pounded loudly on the door.

"Las Vegas Police...open up!"

"Shit shit shit SHIT! It wasn't supposed to end like this...if Duane had just let me have the beetles, everything would have been fine...but no..." yelled the man, panicking as he looked at the door and then back at the doctor tied up in the chair.

"It never does when you try to take the easier option." replied Shino quietly, closing his eyes and waiting, as he felt the man grab hold of his arm and place the barrel against his head once more before they heard the sound of the door breaking.

_**-8-8-8-**_

Grissom watched as the paramedic patched Doctor Aburame up.

Apart from the gash above his left eye and minor bruising, the man managed to survive the ordeal relatively unscathed.

"Dr. Grissom, the beetles...could you please retrieve them? I hid them under the bed." murmured Shino, pointing to the headboard.

"That was quick thinking." remarked Gil, admiring the man's resourcefulness.

"You had left them in my care. I take my responsibilities seriously, Dr. Grissom." replied Shino with a smug half smile.

"Are you planning to stay in town for a while after the Insect Symposium?" asked Gil with a smile as he walked over to the bed, bent down and retrieved the towel wrapped tank.

Grissom turned to find the man smiling and nod in the affirmative.

"I'm in town with a friend. I'm not going to allow something this minor affect my plans for the remainder of my trip to Las Vegas." replied Shino, watching Dr. Grissom carefully unwrap the tank and place it on the table.

"I'm glad I work with beetles. They are easier to understand." murmured Shino, looking at the two beetles wandering around the tank.

Grissom sat down and smiled, nodding in agreement.

Insects were predictable...human nature was not.

"Oi...let me in! Shino! Shino! Are you okay?! Shit...I leave you alone for the afternoon and this freaking happens...You told me that you were going to rest before the dinner...shit shit shit...they're going to kill me."

Grissom felt a smile come to his lips as he saw the other man smile and reluctantly chuckle.

"Let me guess, friend of yours?" asked Grissom, with a tilt of his head, observing the man trying to get into the room.

"Yes, he's excitable and emotional...but he's dependable and has been there when I needed him the most. I couldn't ask for better." returned Shino with a half smile, his covered eyes glancing over to the entrance where a large blonde male waited anxiously.

"Hey, Jim...can you let him in before he self combusts?" asked Gil.

"Sure. My pleasure." replied Brass dryly as a large blonde man pushed past Jim and rushed over, pulling Doctor Aburame into a bear hug and started to loudly bawl.

"You're right. He's quite emotional." noted Grissom, fascinated by the newcomer.

Shino sighed and pat the blubbering man on the back.

"He always has been. You would never guess he's one of the top ten poker players in the world." replied Shino, shaking his head and laughing softly.

"Wait, I know that guy...that's All-In Uzumaki?" asked Warrick in disbelief, walking in and began taking photos of the room.

"Yeah...ruthless card shark and three time World Poker Tournament Bracelet winner...that's him. I couldn't ask for a better friend." countered Shino, with a grateful smile as he held Naruto close.

"True friendship is never serene." quoted Grissom, getting to his feet and tapping Warrick on the shoulder.

"Gris, I still need to take photos." protested Warrick as Gil shook his head.

"We can do it later." replied Grissom, following Warrick and Jim out of the room with a smile.

_**-8-8-8-**_

_Two Nights later..._

"Why are we here, again? I thought we were going to celebrate closing the case." asked Sarah, giving Grissom a puzzled look, as a man walked past with a stag beetle in a cage.

"We are. I thought you were dying to spend some quality time with me, Sarah." quipped Gil with a half smile as they followed the crowd into an area set up with a straight track.

Sarah nodded and stepped back, narrowly avoiding a young boy with a rhino beetle on his hand.

"Oh, don't get me wrong, Gil...I enjoy spending time with you but sharing you with a bunch of bugs and like minded nerds...not so much." replied Sarah with a shrug.

"Dr. Aburame is racing his beetle tonight. I wanted to watch." countered Grissom with a childish grin.

"What is it about men and bugs? Look at you, you're positively giddy." marveled Sarah as they stopped in front of the race area.

"Bugs are cool, Sarah. Racing them is even better." replied Gil with a wide smile as Doctor Aburame got on stage with a small glass tank.

"Besides, I needed a date for dinner tonight. Doctor Aburame invited me and a guest to join him after the race." continued Grissom casually, his eyes on the man pulling the rhino beetle out of the tank.

"Wait...you didn't tell me this was a date, Grissom." grumbled Sarah, a little put out.

Grissom grinned, watching the MC pull up the plastic divider and starting the beetle race.

Dinner was going to be entertaining...he just had a gut feeling about this.

**The End**


End file.
